


(Don't!) Send in the Clowns

by Tobyaudax



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: -like it's so brief you guys, Kissing, Len is 16, Len is a little shit, M/M, Mick is 18, Mutual Pining, Pre-Flash, Scary Clowns, mention of hand-holding, mention of masturbation, technically a blind date if neither of them will admit it's a date, very brief mention of slight homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-09
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2019-04-20 15:33:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14264121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tobyaudax/pseuds/Tobyaudax
Summary: Or, "Blind Date Writing Prompt, ColdWave Edition."Mick and Len have met up a few times after Mick finally got out of juvie, but Len's got big plans and a need for discretion to discuss them. No better place for privacy than a run-down movie theater, playing a film that's not even doing well.





	(Don't!) Send in the Clowns

**Author's Note:**

> I kept trying to adhere exactly to the prompt over on tumblr, so this took a while to finally finish. But all the ideas I got to get Len and Mick on a blind date kept fizzling out or got depressing, somehow. So I, once again, have only loosely met the request. :) Also this is dedicated to [Sophia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SophiaCatherine/pseuds/SophiaCatherine) *finger guns*

Lenny didn’t seem to know it was a date. Oh, he  _wanted_  it to be, if the looks he kept sending Mick when he thought Mick wasn’t looking were any indication. And the way his hands kept fidgeting with his shirt, fingers twitching and once reaching out to Mick before catching himself and dropping the hand into his coat pocket. Mick had dressed casual- it was the only way he could dress, since he’d been on his own for a few months, couldn’t afford better clothes and wasn’t good enough at stealing to take them- but Lenny looked like he stepped out of a John Hughes flick. His coat was a little bit too big and the fold lines still visible on his new shirt, but he looked… nice. He looked good, even if he was still too skinny.

He’d done something stupid with his hair, though- slicked it back or flattened it or something- that Mick had immediately messed up, digging his fingers in and pulling loose the short curls he’d come to admire while they were bunk mates in juvie. It wasn’t the first time they’d caught up with each other since Lenny had gotten out and Mick had suggested they meet at the movies to talk about their new partnership. They’d made big plans while locked up- mostly Lenny planned; Mick preferred to do things spontaneously, but acknowledged that wasn’t always ideal when robbing a bank- and agreed to find each other as soon as they were on the outside. The theatre would be quiet, easy to sneak into and Lenny’s sticky little fingers could get them some free food and extra cash. It would also be dark and no one would notice if Mick worked up the balls to hold Lenny’s hand.

When he first realized he was looking at Lenny a little too long, Mick figured he’d just been in juvie too long. And Lenny was really pretty, besides. Mick still liked girls, still jerked off to girly magazines he swiped from gas stations and 7-11s. But he also started jerking off while thinking about Lenny; his pretty red lips, his hands and his cute, curly hair. He didn’t think any other guys were “cute” or “pretty”, so Mick eventually decided it was just Lenny that got him hard and he wasn’t gay if it was one guy. Especially when that one guy was so fucking pretty it hurt to look at him sometimes.

The theatre in Keystone was only showing three movies-  _Rambo III, Killer Klowns from Outer Space_  and  _American Gothic_. Mick volunteered the Rambo flick, but Lenny insisted they’d have more privacy for the clown movie- it had been out for a week already and Lenny said he hadn’t seen a single good review in the papers. Lenny was always reading- newspapers, non-porno mags, and little paperback books. He’d told Mick about a few of those books and even suggested Mick try  _Bram Stoker’s Dracula_ , since Mick had let slip his interest in hunting vampires. “It’s basically a manual for killin’ ‘em,” Lenny had explained over the shitty food at The Motorcar, where they’d met the day Mick got out of juvie. It was still on his To-Do (or To-Read) list, several weeks later.

So they snuck into the theatre from the alley and snagged seats all the way in the back, under the projection booth. Lenny scampered off to get them snacks- “Extra butter on that pop corn, kid,” Mick had demanded- and Mick picked at a chunk of gum on his armrest with one hand, while the other spun his lighter around in his pocket. He wasn’t sure how long Lenny was gone before he pulled the beat-up lighter free and flicked it open, his world narrowing to the little Flame in the palm of his hand. Distantly, Mick knew he could be spotted and kicked out, since he didn’t have a ticket, but the call of Fire was too strong to ignore. It took Lenny calling him a few times and then shoving him on the shoulder to pull his eyes away and finally re-pocket the lighter.

Someday, he mused as the house lights went down and the previews started, he was going to figure out how Lenny could manage to steal so much without getting spotted- he’d brought back a large soda, tub of popcorn saturated with butter, two boxes of M&Ms and a bag of Red Vines without anyone questioning him. He nudged Mick with a pointy elbow and grinned as he fanned out a hundred dollars like a hand of cards. Mick grinned back around a mouthful of pop corn, raising and wiggling his eyebrows at Lenny’s skills.

They didn’t get much planning done, as Mick’s attention kept wandering to the movie. Despite the title, he’d assumed it was a comedy, but the longer it went on, the more concerned and then actually scared Mick got. Those clowns were fucking terrifying! They were huge and eating people and cotton candy wasn’t meant to be used like that! He ducked down in his seat, pulling the collar of his jacket up and holding tight to his lighter. Lenny snickered beside him.

“What'sa matter, Mick? You scared?”

“Shaddup. M'not.”

“Oh my god you are! You’re scared of some stupid clowns!”

“I ain’t scared, asshole. Just- just keep talkin’. What’re we doin’ once we get outta the bank?”

“Gotta work in some contingencies, now,” Lenny mused as he sucked on a Red Vine. Mick was momentarily distracted from the girl getting  _attacked by clown worms_  on the screen by the way Lenny pursed his lips around the shitty candy.

“Yeah? What for?”

“In case we run into some scary clowns!”

“Fuck you,” Mick muttered, slouching further in his seat.

“What if there’s a street carnival that day? Or a party clown cashing his paycheck? I gotta look out for my big, tough partner.”

“Shut your mouth, Lenny. Said I’m not scared, so I ain’t scared. Just- it’s loud. Too loud, is all.”

“Sure, sure,” Lenny chuckled. He finished off his last Red Vine and kicked his feet up onto the seat in front of them. “You got a death grip on your lighter ‘cause it’s too loud in here.”

“One more word outta you, I swear.”

Lenny backed off for the rest of the movie, which Mick wasn’t sure how he made it through to the end. He was relieved and might have cheered when the clowns were blown up and chased off, launching out of his seat and pumping a fist at the screen. He and Lenny scurried out the exit they’d snuck in through, bumping shoulders and laughing like Mick hadn’t just watched the most terrifying movie in the world. It was dark outside and still chilly, despite June being just around the corner. A cold wind blew over the river from Central and made Lenny’s too-big coat flap out behind him. They made it back to the building Mick was squatting in without another word about the movie, Lenny focused on outlining the plan a few more times. There was still a lot of work to be done- reconnaissance and schedules and Lenny had to time everything just right- but they had a solid foundation for the job laid out.

“You comin’ in?” Mick asked on the fire escape, flipping the lighter around and around in his pocket.

“Naw, gotta get back and check on Lise. Her mom’s been stayin’ out later and y'know Lewis is shit with kids.”

“Yeah. Fuck 'im, the fucker. See ya at Motorcar tomorrow?”

“Tuesday, Mick,” Lenny sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. “Said 'Tuesday’ at least three times.”

“Yeah. Right. I got it, now.”

Lenny was sitting on the rusty railing, legs swinging as he kicked the air on either side of Mick. Mick had settled against the cold brick beside the window into his place, his eyes on Lenny, but more and more of his attention drifting to his lighter and the Flame waiting to be freed. Lenny’s eyes darted to the hand in Mick’s pocket, then glanced at the window. He started to say something, but his mouth stayed open, jaw dropping, and a look of horror on his face. Mick straightened, leaned forward, alert.

“…Don’t look now,” Lenny whispered, voice hoarse. Mick leaned closer, a cold sweat prickling along his neck.

“What? What issit?” Mick was an inch away from Lenny, throat dry and muscles screaming as he held perfectly still.

“There’s- there’s a  _clown in your apartment!_ ” Lenny shouted the last words and Mick stumbled back, whipping around, heart pounding nearly out of his chest. But all he saw in the dimly lit room were their reflections in the window- his terrified expression and Lenny laughing his ass off.

“Your  _face!_ ” Lenny hooted, one hand holding his stomach and the other gripping the rail to keep him from falling. He scrunched up his nose and lowered his voice in a bad imitation of Mick’s to grunt, “I ain’t scared!”

Mick’s instinct was to beat the shit out of him, but he knew too much about the kid’s home life at that point in their partnership to go through with it. He moved back into Lenny’s space anyway, ignoring the way Lenny tensed up. He grabbed the back of Lenny’s head and crushed their lips together. Lenny squeaked into the kiss and his hands shot out to push against Mick’s shoulders for a moment. But a second, or couple seconds later, Lenny’s fingers bunched up the cheap material of Mick’s jacket and brought him even closer. Lenny tilted his head and licked his way into Mick’s mouth; he tasted like Coke and butter and those knock-off Twizzlers. Mick got a hand into Lenny’s hair and grinned as he felt those long, pretty fingers clawing at Mick’s back and along his scalp.

So there was a way to shut Lenny up, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> I haven’t seen a lot of posts on the topic, but the few that I did read speculated that [Stephen King’s “IT”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_\(miniseries\)) was responsible for Mick’s extreme dislike of clowns (as showcased in S3.02 of Legends of Tomorrow, “Freakshow”). Those speculators seem to have forgotten about the [1988 masterpiece “Killer Klowns from Outer Space”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_Klowns_from_Outer_Space), a movie whose title is self-explanatory. 
> 
> Mick would’ve been about 18 when it was released in theatres, so I feel that little gem is the reason he’s not a fan of clowns. (Personally I love clowns, but I can see how that movie could scar a person! ...Especially since I've finally seen the whole thing. It ends in loosely implied polyamory, though, so it's worth a watch just for that!)


End file.
